Appeal No. 2003-0276
Application 09/432,750
rows of the keyboard (page 3; Figure 1) or to delineate the first
and last letters of the second row of keys (page 3; Figure 2).
Appellant and the examiner both agree that the alphabetic
keyboard in Grimmett is not arranged in the claimed sequence
(brief, page 3; answer, page 3).
We agree with the examiner (answer, page 3) that “Yoshida
teaches a keyboard device which switches between a QWERTY mode
and a ABC sequence mode to suit the user’s preference (col. 2
lines 48-54, col. 16 line[s] 24-38),” and that “Yoshida Figs. 14,
15 teaches the ABC keys sequences A-J, K-S, and T-Z as claimed.”
As the title states, the keyboard in Yoshida is on a communica-
tion apparatus for a hearing or speech handicapped person.
Appellant’s argument (brief, page 5) to the contrary notwith-
standing, if Yoshida’s communication apparatus is connected to a
personal computer via the communication device 55 that conforms
to the RS232 interface standard, then the communication apparatus
doubles as a keyboard input to the computer (Figure 1; column 13,
lines 24 through 30; column 20, lines 35 through 49).
Being mindful of Grimmett’s teaching that the QWERTY
keyboard layout is inefficient and confusing for any person using
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